Five years of agony: Bangladesh factory disaster survivors await justice

The pain of waiting 10 hours with her leg crushed by bodies under the rubble of the Rana Plaza factory was hell for Nilufer Begum. But the five-year wait for justice has been just as agonising.

Bangladesh on Tuesday marks the fifth anniversary of one of the world's worst industrial disasters, a building collapse that killed more than 1,130 workers and spotlighted the Western clothing brands benefiting from the country's low wages.

But there is mounting anger this anniversary over the glacial pace of the court case against those arrested in the aftermath of the tragedy.

The weight of three bodies and rubble crippled Begum's right leg on April 24, 2013.

The 38-year-old has had to undergo operations which have cost twice the $3,500 compensation she received, forcing her to borrow from relatives and charities.

"I am counting the hours to my death. The muscles in my leg are wasting away. My kidneys are failing," Begum, who now runs a grocer's store near the factory ruins, told AFP.

More than 2,000 injured workers from the nine-storey complex, which collapsed like a pack of cards, have similar stories.

Many have spent all their compensation on medical bills, according to ActionAid Bangladesh.

Nilufer Begum says the slow wait for justice is the only thing that keeps her going

MUNIR UZ ZAMAN, AFP

Begum says the slow wait for justice is the only thing that keeps her going.

"None of us wanted to enter the factories that day," she recalled. "They forced us to work despite pillars that crumbled the day before. Five years have passed and no one has been tried or punished."

"The building owner is having a great time in jail. All the other accused are out on bail. The factory owners and the managers who threatened to fire us if we didn't work are free," said the tearful mother of an 11-year-old boy.

"So many of us have lost limbs or been crippled. But now everyone has forgotten us and the disaster," she added.

- 'Witnesses missing' -

Rana Plaza's collapse triggered international outrage.

European and US clothing brands -- including Primark, Mango and Benetton -- were pressured to improve pay and conditions at the Bangladesh factories which employ some four million workers with wages starting at $65 a month, among the world's lowest.

Groups which oversee safety upgrades say Bangladesh factories have improved. The 20 reported accidents last year was the lowest in recent years.

A group representing more than 100 European brands still warned however that "major life-threatening safety concerns remain" among the 4,500 textile plants.

Whistleblower journalist Nazmul Huda was feted after the disaster for being the lone reporter to write and broadcast about the crumbling pillars at Rana Plaza before the collapse. The Rana Plaza ruins are now a vast hole filled with hyacinths

MUNIR UZ ZAMAN, AFP

The work to improve conditions has been faster than the trial of Rana Plaza owner, Sohel Rana, and nearly 40 others -- including factory officials and government inspectors who were charged with murder.

Rana was jailed for three years last August for failing to declare his personal wealth to Bangladesh's anti-graft commission. He also faces the murder charges.

Proceedings are dragging on and prosecutors say a verdict could take five more years.